Braces are a great conductor of electricity!

I started the day observing Amy teach 11th graders about limits in math. I have noticed that in a lot of the high school classrooms, the students call the teacher by his/her first name. I have yet to ask any of them about it, but I think it would be interesting to hear their reasoning for the choice. I have also noticed how extremely patient many of these teachers are with their students' understanding. I realize that patience seems to be a quality that teachers must have, but lets me honest, certain teachers explain the material in one way and may get frustrated when their students' don't understand after they have explained it 3 times in the exact same form. Amy was explaining limits and derivatives which is complex material to learn how to manipulate let alone understand why it works, which seems mandatory at this school. She presented the material in many different ways and then checked for understanding. She reassured students that they did not need to master this concept and that it was okay if they were confused. I was impressed that she did not express a hint of frustration with herself or her students. I think this attitude allows for better relationships and room to ask questions. After 11th grade math, I went to hang out with Dan's 8th grade class, who were working on electric circuits. Dan gave them a battery, wires, washers, a nail, a switch, a light bulb, and a worksheet to provide them with a little guidance. They dug right in. I worked with one group as they connected the wires, battery, and light bulb to make a simple circuit. The circuits progressed in complexity as they added another battery, another light bulb, and a switch. They tested the washer and nail to see if they conducted electricity. Here's were the fun part comes in! Dan announced that someone should attach the wires to their braces to see if the light bulb would turn on. Sure enough, it did. Then they attached three people with braces to the wires and made a human circuit which is the picture you see here. You'll notice that the student on the right is holding the light bulb which is lit up. We then decided to make a circuit with the whole class. We all went into the commons with a wire to attach our wires to a piece of metal we were wearing. People were connected by braces, belts, earrings, and zippers. It didn't work with everyone connected and as we went through the types of connections we figured out that the zippers were breaking our connection. It was a great period of exploration and fun. Next I went to the drama X block and watched a rehearsal. It was very interesting. The drama teacher was full of energy and the students were great actors. I would love to continue attending that X block on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For lunch I went to Panera Bread with Erin and three other tutors. After lunch, Becky, one of the tutors, took me over to the elementary school to show me around. Incredible! Becky has a 1st grader at Explorer and she feels extremely lucky to have gotten her in. They have something like 300 applicants for 3 spots in kindergarten. We walked around the school looking at all the artwork and meeting some of the teachers. We stopped in her daughter’s classroom which is where I took a picture of this incredible tree house loft. Becky explained the one thing that sets Explorer apart from typical elementary schools is their second curriculum which involves social skills. They call it second step and it consists of teaching the students how to work cooperatively and solve their problems using words. They actually go to a class once a week to work on these skills. I love this idea because our society judges people based on social abilities, but they are not taught in schools. Unless you are very observant of excellent role models, you may struggle with relationships and not understand why. I would love to volunteer at the elementary school one afternoon a week to help in the classroom or read with the students, so we'll see how that goes. I then returned to watch the last half hour of Dan's class. He discussed series and parallel circuits. He explained that old Christmas lights are series circuits which is why when one light bulb is burnt out the ones after it fail to work because the burnt out one breaks the flow of electricity. Now they have made new Christmas lights with parallel circuits to avoid that annoying problem. I then observed 7th grade math taught by Kristen. She is a very calm spirit and reminds me of Mr. Young. She explained that her partner is completely opposite and full of energy so they make a great combination for the students. Her room has the beautiful artwork that was painted by students last year. This is just a taste of the inside of this school. Here is also a picture of the ceiling or lack there of. The ceilings have no tile and consist of colorful pipes and open space. For the last hour of the day, I observed 7th grade Spanish. Some of these students have been taking Spanish for a couple years now so their 7th grade class is comparable to our 9th grade class. At this rate, they will be fluent by 11th grade! Not a bad idea. That is all for now.